An initiative to clear homeless encampments that began in Tulsa, called Operation SAFE, has now spread to Oklahoma City, Gov. Kevin Stitt said in an announcement Monday afternoon.
The Oklahoma Highway Patrol and the Oklahoma Department of Transportation have begun cleanup efforts, this time, in partnership with Key to Home, Oklahoma City's public-private partnership to address homelessness.
"After the success of Operation SAFE in Tulsa, business leaders and stakeholders quickly requested the state to do the same here in Oklahoma City," Stitt said in a statement.
When he launched the operation in September, he said people living in encampments would be connected to services or sent to jail.
"Homeless individuals will either be transported to a treatment/housing facility or taken to jail if they refuse help," he wrote in a Facebook post.
The effort in Tulsa ultimately led to no arrests and one connection to services, though Stitt boasted that nearly 2 million pounds of debris were collected during the clearings.
"This is not about solving homelessness," Stitt said in an interview with The Frontier. "This is about enforcing the law and making sure you're setting the culture to allow people to go get the help that they need and make sure that they're not breaking the law."
For the next round of sweeps, Stitt didn't mention jail. Instead, he said Key to Home will be tasked with helping house people living on state-owned property
"We are partnering with Key to Home, an Oklahoma City-based public/private partnership, to connect those individuals we move from state property to services and housing," Stitt said in the statement. "The state is doing its job, and just like in Tulsa, it's the role of the city and non-profits to ensure Oklahoma City stays clean and safe for all residents."
"We're just happy to be able to partner with the state so that we can both achieve our goals in both upholding the law, but also providing that dignified response for folks that are living outside," said Key to Home spokesperson Erika Warren.
Warren said the organization got word that the state planned to bring Operation SAFE to Oklahoma City and reached out proactively to coordinate over the preceding weeks.
"They've worked with us to allow us to kind of go in ahead of them and make contact with folks that are living on state-owned property," Warren said. "So that we can make the offer for supportive services and get them on that pathway to housing, and then the state can come in after us and make sure the site is cleaned up and everything is removed."
Warren said the organization expects to talk with about 80 people living on state-owned land throughout the operation. Normally, they work for weeks to build rapport with people during the rehousing process. She said the 50 partners who comprise Key to Home are well-prepared to handle Operation SAFE's expedited timeline.
"We've been doing this encampment rehousing kind of model for about two years now, so we've really built the muscles as a community," Warren said. "We have really strong relationships with all of our partners that work with us on encampment rehousing."
Homeless Alliance will store belongings in their winter shelter, Warren said. City Care and City Rescue Mission are collaborating to transport and shelter people, while connecting them to housing services.
OKC Mayor David Holt said Key to Home is a major contributor to Oklahoma City's shrinking unsheltered homeless population.
"Key to Home has taken nearly 500 people off the streets in a sustainable way that doesn't just move people around," Holt said in a statement. "State-owned property is obviously a very limited subset of Oklahoma City's land mass, so the work of Key to Home will continue long past today. We are grateful for any opportunity to collaborate with property owners and demonstrate Key to Home's continued effectiveness."
State Senate Democratic Leader Julia Kirk of Oklahoma City was more critical.
"The governor just put on this political show in Tulsa and there is no evidence that it actually solved any real problems," she said. "We all want the same thing – to reduce homelessness and make our communities safer. But these short-sighted solutions do nothing but waste taxpayer dollars."
Tulsa World reported Stitt's sweeps in Tulsa cost the state at least $560,000. Service providers said the operation blindsided them, and they worried it may have exacerbated homelessness in the area, causing 'traumatic experiences' for the people they are trying to help.
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